If you came looking for Apple Guardians, you found it! Only the site name has changed. All else stays the same. Welcome back.

August 23, 2011

How a Palm Oil Company Makes Its Profit

Cargill Inc., the world’s largest agricultural trader – and the largest importer of rainforest-destroying palm oil in to the US – just reported a record net profit of $4.2 billion. That’s a 63% increase over the same period last year.

From Girl Scout cookies to laundry detergents to lipstick, Cargill’s palm oil finds its way into almost every American home and many more around the world. Chances are, there’s some of that palm oil in your cabinet or laundry room right now.

The sad truth is that Cargill’s palm oil operation has been run with the ruthless mentality of a cut-throat trader: buy low, sell high and to hell with the inconvenience of considering the impact on people and planet. This has meant turning a blind eye to slave labor, the eviction of Indigenous peoples from their ancestral land, and the destruction of rainforest habitat for endangered orangutans.

Rainforest Action Network, however, has Cargill’s attention. They have been putting so much pressure on Cargill by exposing their methods to the general public. Cargill, therefore, has begun taking steps to clean up its tainted supply chain. It still has quite a long way to go. Cargill needs to be pushed all the way.

I'm a Master Naturalist and an outdoor enthusiast -- mostly kayaking, and I live on a Peninsula in the Chesapeake Bay. I'm the author of The Nature Fan, Nature Fan Activists, Green Earth Almanac, and Amanda's Geographic. Formerly, I ran the nationally syndicated column "National Green Activism" for The Examiner, and I was a key factor in the success of many campaigns. Make sure you don't miss a post, and subscribe by email! Thanks for reading.